


Soul Lights - A Sword Art Online Re-Imagining Fic

by Shutsumon



Category: Sword Art Online
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Because it's a re-imagining, Canon-Typical Violence, Character Death, F/M, Gen, Out of Character
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-02
Updated: 2018-11-01
Packaged: 2019-08-14 11:15:29
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,959
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16491512
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shutsumon/pseuds/Shutsumon
Summary: Ten thousand players trapped in a death game, but this is not the story that you think you know even when it seems the same. Forget everything you think you know about Sword Art Online...





	Soul Lights - A Sword Art Online Re-Imagining Fic

**Author's Note:**

> Hi Peeps!
> 
> This is my 2018 NaNoWriMo project so I should be posting fairly regularly as I complete chapters. It's a re-imagining of SAO with some surprising changes.
> 
> One final thing - as this is my NaNoWriMo it's not been edited so it's probably a bit rough.

"Hello and welcome to this week's MMO stream!" The announcer sounded perhaps a little too enthusiatic, Kazuto, known as Kirito in the games he played, thought as he waited impatiently for the clock to tick down to the launch. "And we're starting with a promotional video for the world's first true Virtual Reality MMO which opens its doors today - Sword Art Online. SAO for short."  
  
"Well strictly it's one of two VRMMO's as rival Alfheim Online also known as ALO also opens its doors today," her co-host pointed out.  
  
"Yes, it's a very exciting day - to be honest none of the games released so far for the Nervegear have taken full advantage of the hardwear's capabilities, but these two games are both amazing according to the beta testers. SAO inparticular has people very excited because it's actually created by the Nervegear's creator Kayaba Akihiko's company Argus. If anyone knows his invention it's him. The bold decision to limit the initial release to just ten thousand players has just increased the hype. Of course, everything about SAO is bold from what we know from the beta testers. No magic in a fantasy game, an innovative mixture of open world and quest led gameplay which means the first time a raid clears a floor boss and activates the teleport plaza on the next floor it opens to everyone without them having to defeat the boss themselves - unless they want to of course."  
  
"And ALO is also partly Kayaba's creation, even though it's being published by rival company RECT-Progress since it's built on the open-source VR world engine known as "The Seed" which Kayaba released for anyone to use."  
  
"Yes, and I will be playing ALO later today but I really wanted a copy of Sword Art Online. Unfortunately the digital copies sold out in minutes online and people were queuing for days outside physical stores. For now I'll have to content myself with watching the livestreams, I guess. Several well known Streamers got copies and are going to stream the opening. Though for me that's never as much fun - hopefully they'll do the second release soon."  
  
Kirito had bought Alfheim Online, of course,  the setting sounded interesting so he was sure he would get around to it eventually, but he knew he was going to play SAO first. His copy of that was complementary. One of a package of rewards for being a beta tester and he could not wait to return to that world where he felt more alive than in the real world.  
  
"Kazuto! I'm off to practice!" His sister Suguha called from outside.  
  
He glanced out of the window and saw her running down the path with her Kendo sword. It was a shame she wasn't interested in games she would have been great at SAO with her real world skills. Even having dropped Kendo years ago that initial training had served him well in the Beta.  He waved at her out of the window then grabbed his Nervgear from the shelf and put it on. Then when the clock finally ticked down to 1pm he grinned and gave the all important command.  
  
"Link Start!"  
  
After the initial checks and login screen played inside his mind there was a brief falling sensation before he seemed to materialise in a square in the center of the Town of Beginnings. He looked down at his hands, the slight stylisation and cartoony shading of which was the only clue that this was an image being played into his brain by the Nervegear rather than an actual other world.  
  
He clenched his virtual fist and his grin widened. "Yes, I've finally returned to this world."  
  
Around him other players flickered into existence as they logged on.

 

***

Kirito took a moment to get his bearings and check that things were exactly as he remembered from the Beta Test before setting off at a run towards the best place in the town to get the best starting sword a player could obtain without either completing a quest or getting a lucky drop. The shop in question was actually not in the main shopping district and it would likely be a while before new players started finding it. He was fairly sure that less than ten percent of the beta testers had even found the place, but then a lot hadn't been looking. He ducked down the alleyway that would lead to the hidden arcade.  
  
"Oi! You there!" It was only when someone hailed him that he realised his assurance of where he was going stood out among the newbies. He turned around to find a player who's avatar had red hair and small beard. He was wearing samurai style clothes and a bandana that looked suspiciously like the one he noticed someone wearing in one of the photos he'd seen of successful buyers on MMO stream only minutes before. That guy had also had the red hair and beard as well though the resemblence ended there - like most avatars thiis guy's looks were idealised. He also had a small sphere floating by his left shoulder, they'd been forbidden in the beta test but Kirito knew what that was. A VR camera - the guy must be a streamer.  
  
"Me?" Kirito said.  
  
"You move like you know this place! You were in beta test weren't you?"  
  
"Uh-uh!" Kirito nodded.  
  
"Today's my first day, please show me the ropes!" The guy clasped Kirito's shoulder for a moment before stepping back and bowing. "And maybe tell my watchers about your experiences in the beta!" He bowed again. "I'm Klein, by the way."  
  
Definitely a streamer then and a rather forward one at that. Kirito hesitated for a moment - if he helped this guy it would mean showing up the secret of the arcade to anyone who watched the stream - but then anyone who was watching was likely not a player yet and the advantage of the weapons  over those bought in the main market was slim. He intended to trade up for a quest blade pretty quickly. He smiled at Klein and tilted his head.  
  
"Sure," he said. "I'm Kirito."  
  
The first thing he did was take Klein to the hidden arcade and help him pick a blade based on his chosen style. He was only mildly surprised when his new friend picked a Katana. It went with outfit after all. That done and his own weapon picked he took him out to the fields around the city to fight the weakest monsters in  the game - wild boars.  
  
Even though Klein was clearly an experienced MMORPG player he had some trouble with getting the hang of activating sword skills as he was very new to the Nervegear. Kirito couldn't blame him for that, it was odd doing things with your mind instead a controller. But still rolling around on the ground moaning about your crotch after being hit when you didnn't feel any pain was overdoing it. He commented on this and Klein looked a bit sheepish.  
  
"Sorry, just hamming it up for the viewers."  
  
"I see," Kirito said drily before turning back to the task of explaining? "Look, like I told you it's the initial input that's important."  
  
"You say that, but how when it keeps moving."  
  
"Don't worry about that," Kirito said. "As long as the initial input is correct and you activate a sword skill the system will make sure it hits." He threw a stone to demonstrate. It connected with a thwap and shaved a sliver of HP off the monster. "See?"  
  
"Hmm." Klein developed a scowl of concentration. He raised his katana and perfected his stance. A moment later his blade glowed  and he launched himself at the boar, slashing it down the side. It squealed as its HP dropped to zero and exploded into polygons. "Yes!" he leapt around, dancing his triumph.  
  
"Congratulations!" Kirito high fived him. "But you should know the boars are about as weak as slimes in other games."  
  
"Oh really. I thought it was a mid-level boss or something," Klein said with a deadpan expression before winking. "More seriously I did guess that, you don't seem the sort to go in for Monster Player Killing after all."  
  
"I'm glad you think that!" Kirito said. "Now shall we go fight a few more boars to check you've got the hang of it?"  
  
"Sure!" Klein said. "I've still got a couple of hours before my pizza comes at five thirty."  
  
"You've ordered pizza? You're well prepared." Kirito said.  
  
Klein just grinned.  
  
Over the next couple of hours they dispatched several more boars and Kirito got the sense that Klein was using him not just as a teacher but as a straight man to keep his viewers entertained while they went through the monotony of grinding, but he found he didn't really mind. Then, once they were worn out, they sat and admired the view.  
  
"I still can't believe we are in a game," Klein said. "I mean sure it's slightly stylised and the colours are maybe a bit simplified but it's so real."  
  
"Well it's not like your soul has been pulled out of your body and deposited here," Kirito said. "This is all being played into your brain by the Nervegear."  
  
"I know, I know, it's just hard to believe," Klein said. "I should probably check my chat. I usually interact with my viewers more but this world is so--" He broke off, staring into space with a shocked expression. "What the hell?" He bought up his screen and stared at it. "D-damn it's true..."  
  
"What's wrong?" Kirito asked.  
  
"Check your screen, the logout button is gone!"  
  
"What?" Kirito brought his up and saw that it was indeed true. "Some sort of glitch?"  
  
"I-I wish it were." Klein made a spinning gesture with his hand and the floaating screen on which he could see his livestream's chat appeared. It seemed to be in uproar and as Kirito skimmed what people were saying about people dying and Kayaba claiming responsibility he realised that Klein's swearing had been understated.  
  
"Oh," was all he could think of to say.  
  
"This is some sort of joke, right?" Klein said hopefully. "A hoax in very bad taste by Argus for the launch. I mean could a Nervgear actually do that?"  
  
"Microwave someone's brain?" Kirito considered the question. "Possibly, it's emitters are not supposed to be that powerful but maybe if you just targetted one area of the brain it might work. Still I'm surprised it can do it fast enough that it can kill a person before it's removed. It's not like we have a maser on our heads. Maybe it is a hoax. I hope it is." Somehow he didn't think it was a hoax. Not given the fact the deaths were on the news.  
  
Klein looked thoughtful. "What should we--" He broke off as the polygons that made up the world of Aincrad seemed to twitch around them.  
  
For a moment the world froze and glitched out. Then everything went black and Kirito felt as if everything was pulling on him, trying to remove him from the world. A scream ripped through his mind and the world reappeared. He was lying on the ground and Klein was near by also collapsed. Kirito pulled himself to his knees and crawled over to his new friend.  
  
"Are you okay?" he asked.  
  
Klein sat up and nodded. "What in the world was that?"  
  
"I'm not sure," Kirito said. "The bit when it went black felt like a forced logout so maybe someone was trying to get us out. But the glitching and the scream... I don't know." He looked down at his hands and froze. No longer did they look like a realistic construct with slightly toony shading. They looked like real flesh and blood hands, albeit a bit more elegant than his own. He looked around wildly and discovered that Klein's avatar and the rest of the virtual world had gained the same realness. "What the hell?! This sort of detail is impossible."  
  
"What?" Klein looked around and his eyes widened. "How... what is going on? If I wasn't looking at my chat right now I'd think we'd been pulled out of the game and in to an actual fantasy world." He lifted his thumb to his mouth and bit down gently. "Well at least the pain absorber still works."  
  
"A small mercy if we're stuck here," Kirito said. "We need to find out what's going--" Before he could go any further there was a deep bonging sound as bell somewhere  began tolling and then a pillar of light engulfed them both and they found themselves in the central plaza of the Town of Beginnings. Around them the other players were flashing into existence.  
  
"A forced teleport?" Kirito murmered. "Have they summoned everyone?"  
  
"Maybe they are going to explain how they will get us out," Klein said.  
  
"Or maybe Kayaba is going to tell us what he is up to," Kirito replied as the sky turned red and filled with hexagons alternating the messages "Warning" and "System Announcement."  
  
As he stared up at them Kirito was filled with a sense of sudden doom.

 

***

 

The crowd around the two of them was all staring at the red dome as well and from the shouted queries about if they could log out yet and the cries to hurry up and not be so melodramatic it was obvious that most of them were not yet aware of what was going on in the real world. Not surprising since the majority would not be streamers.  
  
The rumblings of discontent were silenced when a viscous liquid that looked like blood began oozing from between the hexagons and dripping slowly towards the ground. It never hit instead pooling and congealing into the form of a twenty meter tall faceless figure which hovered over the plaza.  
  
"Is that a GM?" Klein whispered as mutters of unquiet replace discontent in the crowd around them.  
  
"It's a GM's cloak but the ones in the Beta had face," Kirito replied. "Given what we've heard I suspect the worst."  
  
"Greetings, Players, welcome to my world," the figure said. The voice was deep and eerily calm. "My name is Kayaba Akihiko and as of this moment I am the sole person in control of this world... the world that is now your home."  
  
"So much for it being a hoax," Kirito muttered though most people around him seemed to be still be trying to grasp the situuation.  
  
"As I'm sure many of you have discovered that the log out button has disappeared from your menu screen. I would like to reassure you that this is not a bug, it is a feature of Sword Art Online. Until you reach the top floor of the castle you will be unable to log out of your own free will."  
  
"What castle?" Kirito muttered as people started shouting shock around him. "There's no castle in the Town of Beginn--" He broke off and looked back up at the hooded apparition as a terrible suspicion entered his mind. Kayaba couldn't possibly mean Aincrad itself could he?  
  
"And as I suspect some of you have already learned disruption or disconnection of the Nervegear from the outside will result will lead to the signal sensors emitting a strong electro-magnetic pulse and destroying you brain."  
  
The murmering got louder but still no one panicked. Probably because it was too much to take in for the people who hadn't been forewarned by being or knowing a streamer.  
  
"Specifically disconection from a power source for more than ten minutes, being cut off from the system for more than two hours or any attempt to unlock, dismantle or destroy the Nervegear will lead to initiation of the brain destruction sequence. These condition have been made known to the government and the general public via mass media but unfortunately not everyone listened and I regret to inform you that two hundred and thirteen of your fellow players have already left Aincrad and the real world permanently."  
  
"Odd, that's less casulties than my chat was saying," Klein muttered. "It's still two hundred and thirteen too many. What the hell does this guy want?"  
  
Even as he spoke someone nearby started screaming, a long thin scream that trailed off into broken sobs. A female character was on her knees, hugging herself and whispering a name over and over. She must have seen someone she cared about disconnected and now realised what that meant. Most people, however, still didn't think this was real and reacted accordingly.  
  
"What is this?" someone yelled. "Stop it with this sick opening event and let us out!"  
  
"Yeah! This isn't funny!" someone else shouted. "Who signed off on this stupid idea?"  
  
The apparition didn't respond to the shouts and Kirito began to wonder if he was simply a recording rather than an actual person. Instead he continued in the same eerily calm, business-like tones.  
  
"Do not worry, Players, the media is constantly reporting on what is happening so the danger of any of you having your Nervgear removed has pretty much passed. Soon, using the two hours grace I have provided your bodies will be transported to hospitals and other places where you will receive the best treatment. So don't worry about that. Instead concentrate on clearing the game."  
  
"What!" Kirito stared at apparition in shock. "He wants us to keep playing the game in this situation? Like this is a game any more."  
  
"But you need to understand, Players, that this is no longer a simple game. For you it is second reality. As of this announcement there is no longer any method of resurrection in the game. Should your HP ever reach zero your avatar will be deleted and the Nervegear will destroy your brain."  
  
Kirito sucked in a breath. "So it is a game," he muttered. "A death game... but why would anyone play?"  
  
The answer came soon enough as the phantom avatar gave its next message.  
  
"There is now only one way for you to return to the real world. As I have already said you must reach the top of Aincrad and defeat the final boss who lives there. Once this is achieved all surviving players will be logged out. You have my word."  
  
"But that's impossible!" Klein exclaimed. "Even the Beta players never got anywhere near that high."  
  
Confused murmers came from all around but many were obviously still confused about if this was real or a really terrible opening event.  
  
"I imagine many of you are doubtful so I have given you proof," he continued. "Look in your inventory and you will find a gift from me."  
  
Kirito soon located the hand mirror in his inventory and looked at it. What was this? The internal question was soon answered as light burst around everyone in the plaza and when it cleared no one looked the same. Kirito stared at the guy in front of him, who had the same bandana and armor as Klein but a different face. It was definitely the guy who's picture he'd seen on MMO stream before logging in.  
  
"Klein?" he asked, then blinked. His voice sounded different, like his own instead of the one he'd created for his avatar. He looked in the mirror and saw his own face staring back.  
  
"Yeah, are you Kirito?" Klein's voice had changed too. "How does the Nervegear know what we look like."  
  
"The Nervegear has sensors, it knows what our faces look like." Kirito looked around at the crowd which had changed not just in appearance but in build. "But the rest.."  
  
Klein frowned as well.  "Oh! The calibration we did when we set the Nervegear up! We had to pat ourselves! That's how it knows."  
  
It made sense, Kirito conceded.  
  
"So you see, They may be made of polygons but these are your real bodies and this is your real world," the message continued.  
  
Kirito narrowed his eyes. It seemed Kayaba was unaware of the mysterious change in the world just before the teleport, or had he just been unaware before he recorded this message. Either way it seemed strange but he wasn't quite sure what to make of it and he had bigger things to worry about. Like not dying.  
  
"One more thing," the message said. "I can't have you communicating with the other side. That would ruin your immersion." It waved one hand and the various livestream cameras glowed. "So those need to go." However when the light faded the cameras were still there and whispers from Klein and others indicated they could still access their chat. The apparition did not seem to notice, however, and continued in the same deadpan tone. "You are wondering why I, Kayaba Akihiko, would do such a thing. Is this terrorism. Am I holding you for ransom? No, I promise it is nothing of the sort. I have already achieved my aim - this situation is my aim. I created SAO and the Nervegear so I could create this world and intervene in it."  
  
"That's so... what sort of a reason is that?" Klein said. He wasn't the only person in the crowd voicing such a sentiment but again they were ignored.  
  
"This concludes the official Launch Tutorial for Sword Art Online. Players I wish you luck." The last sentance trailed off with a faint echo then the robe melted back into blood and rained down on the still shocked crowd.  
  
A moment later the normal sounds of the game returned and a group of NPC musicians struck up an inappropriately happy tune.  
  
It was soon drowned out by another sound. Nearly ten thousand players screaming, begging, wailing and generally finally reacting in an appropriate way to what had just happened.  
  
Kirito didn't like this at all. He grabbed Klein's hand and pulled him away from the plaza into a side street.  
  
"Listen to me, we need to get out of here and head to the next village. Once people get over the initial shock they will start hunting all the monsters around here to strengthen themselves. If we go to the next village we won't have to compete for resources with them. I know the way so even at Level One I can get us there safely."  
  
Klein nodded but looked hesitent. "I - well I waited in line with five of my friends to get SAO and they'll all be out there in the plaza. I can't abandon them..."  
  
Kirito bit his lip. Getting six people safely to the next village would be harder... not impossible but harder.  
  
"It's okay, you've done enough," Klein said. "You've helped me get the basics. I'll show my friends. I used to run a guild in my old game it'll be fine."  
  
Kirito shook his head. "No, it's okay. I'm just mulling over how to get us all to the next village safely. Go and find your friends and bring them to the entrance of the hidden arcade where we got your sword. We'll get them the best equipment and some healing potions and go from there."  
  
"Thank you!" Klein bowed and ran off into the Plaza.  
  
Kirito watched him go and found himself looking at a man standing near the edge of the plaza. He was tall, strongly built with steel grey hair inspite of being young and he was obviously enraged by the situation he found himself in as he was pacing up and down muttering about 'how dare they!" and that he would stop them. Kirito watched him for a moment, curious as to his use of a plural but it didn't seem important so he hurried off to where he intended to meet Klein and his friends.  
  
  
  



End file.
